King Marsiliun: Antagonist Of An Epic

a. King Marsiliun is the antagonist of this epic. He is the last king that Charlemagne has to conquer to acquire Spain. Undoubtedly, King Marsiliun’s small, pagan army could not withstand a war from Charlemagne’s vast and skilled militia, so he devised a plan to trick and weaken Charlemagne so Marsiliun and his army could victoriously attack them. Marsiliun sent his pagan servants into Charles’ domain to request that Charles return back to Aix where they would meet, and Marsiliun and his followers and bow down to Charlemagne and convert to Christianity. When Ganelon and Marsiliun’s men returned with Charlemagne’s answer, Marsiliun was outraged. Ganelon feared for his life at the hands of the enraged pagan king, so in ordered to save each other,